


Neither Here Nor There

by orphan_account



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: A tad of violence, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, But its not the center of the fic, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, I think it would've gone places, It sure is a shame that Voltron ended after two seasons, Klance happens, M/M, Missing, Pidge goes missing, keith pov
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-18
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-10-30 11:13:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17827514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Voltron's defining characteristic is its need for all its paladins, but what if one disappears?(a.k.a. Pidge goes missing, and the rest of the team is left missing their personal techie, and their little sister)





	Neither Here Nor There

**Author's Note:**

> This is a Pidge centric fic. Yes, it's from Keith's PoV and Pidge is missing for the majority of it, but it's Pidge centric. If you don't like Pidge(which I hold no judgement towards), this fic isn't for you. I liked Pidge from the get-go, and I don't want to let the crappiness that is the VLD writing ruin that for me.

Keith had never been good at sleeping the night through. He could normally fall asleep okay, but once he woke back up there was no force in the universe that could return him to unconsciousness. As a kid he would lay in bed for hours, waiting for the sun to rise. In the present, Keith wandered around, sometimes heading to the kitchen, sometimes working in some extra training, sometimes just walking to see what he could find.

It was around 3am Castle Time. Keith found himself roaming down the halls of the ship. Each footstep resonated emptily. The lights remained on, making the idea that this was “night time” for the rest of the team eerie and faroff. The castle was awake, so why weren’t they?

He didn’t have any particular destination; he rarely did. His room became too stifling in the dead of “night,” mocking him for waking up. Keith had to move. Keith had to be somewhere that was  **not there** . But sometimes  **not there** wasn't any better. Like tonight.

From somewhere a few doors down, a cry of frustration and tears rang out. Pidge. Likely staying up too late working on a project. Keith tiptoed over to her room, unsure of his plan of action. He debated charging in there, asking her what was wrong and how he could help. 

But, of course, would she want it? From him? Why would she, Keith didn’t know the first thing about talking to people. It would come across too brutal, too “I don’t actually care about you, I’m just trying to keep this from affecting the team.” She wouldn’t want it from him.

His hand lowered from the keypad. Keith didn’t know why he did this every time he heard people awake and upset; he always came to the same conclusion: not worth it, they don’t want You. 

It only took one mistake to see that.

But then another yell passed through the door, followed by shout-rambling that bordered on hysterical. “Alright, Pidge, this isn’t that hard, just finish the freaking program  _ so you can go the fuck to bed _ . Just finish the program, that’s all you gotta do, that’s it. The guys need this, the sooner you get it done the safer they’ll be, and you can’t wait because if they need it before then and they get hurt because they don’t have it, it’ll be all your fault. So just finish writing the program, and you can go to sleep and be done with this.”

The talking stopped, then sporadic typing replaced it, cutting out here and there like a radio with bad signal.

His hand hovered near the keypad once more, the debate rekindled. Pidge needed to be pulled out out of her self-inflicted work hell-cycle and put to bed. She had already run herself ragged; Keith hated the idea of seeing what would happen if the girl continued to push it. But what would he be able to do? It felt like being asked to unlock a padlock for which he didn’t have a key. He could shake it and grab at it all he wanted, but ultimately all that would unlock was more frustration. 

His hand floated down once again. He may not have the key, or really any metaphorical keys, but Keith didn’t have to be the one to talk Pidge down, to unlock the padlock. He stepped away from the door and started off to the distant quarters of a person who had a key. Once at the correct door, the boy knocked before placing his hand on the keypad and unlocking the room. Inside lay a slumbering Allura, undisturbed by the tapping at her door. 

Keith crept over to her bedside and nervously began shaking the princess awake. “Hey, Allura, could you wake up please?”

She shifted around and mumbled something incoherent to Keith. At a bit more prodding, Allura sat up like a crack of thunder, bolting awake. She shot her hands up into a defensive position and glanced around quickly to take in her surroundings. “What’s wrong? Who’s there?”

Keith placed a soft hand on her shoulder, drawing her attention. Once focused on him, the princess lowered her arms. “Sorry, to wake you up, but could you come with me? I overheard Pidge crying and I didn’t know what to do but I thought maybe you would, though I probably shouldn’t have woken you up, I’m sorry, but she sounded--”

Allura set a hand on his, the one on her shoulder. “Thank you for getting me, Keith. Would you take me to her?” At his nodding, she stood, and they began walking to Pidge’s room.

Keith isn’t sure why he woke Allura in particular. Any of people of the ship would’ve been more than capable and more than willing to do the job. Both Pidge and him were close with the princess, but not more so with her than any of their other teammates. Maybe there wasn’t a reason, only a gut feeling that Allura was what Pidge would want. Maybe that’s all the reason he needed.

They reached Pidge’s door quickly, where the same clunky, sporadic typing could be heard. Allura smiled at him and waved an arm ahead of her. “After you.”

Keith paused at that. “No, no, I couldn’t. I got you for a reason.”

“Keith,” she looked at him with a look of… concern? Pity? “There’s no reason she wouldn’t want you there.”

“I know, Allura, but… it’s not like I’ll be be able to help.” He sighed. “Just go in there without me. I need to head to bed anyways.”

Allura paused for a moment, most likely contemplating if arguing with him was worth it.

“I’m all good, Allura. But Pidge needs you right now. Go help her.” Keith knocked on the door, placed his hand on the keypad to open it, and stepped away from the entryway. 

Allura nodded at him, and then stepped into the bedroom. “Pidge, are you alright? Keith overheard you and was worried...”

Closing doors cut off the conversation from the outside world, cut off the conversation from Keith. He began walking away with no intent of heading back to bed. He hoped he wouldn’t hear anymore paladins awake. They deserved a good night’s rest.

 

~~~

 

The group was taking a break on the planet Ainus, a name that Allura and Coran did not understand why was so funny to the paladins. 

 

“Ainus is uninhabited by any intelligent life-- what’s so funny, Hunk?”

“It’s-- it’s nothing, Allura.” He snorted. “Just some translating issues.”

“Well, alright, Ainus...”

 

Despite the alternate meaning of the name, the planet itself was quite nice, covered in forests looking near identical to those on Earth. It primarily differed not in its trees or other life, but instead the plentiful streams and rivers, all colored a deep purple.

They had landed the castle in a valley near the equator, where the group would reconvene at sundown. Until then, the paladins were free to wander and enjoy the scenery as they pleased. Keith found himself hopping across one of the streams on some rocks with Lance and Pidge.

“On a scale of water to sulfuric acid, how bad is this stuff for us if we were to fall in?” Lance asked, arms outstretched as he walked along.

“Well, Allura didn’t warn us about it, so probably nothing too bad. Besides, I doubt it’d be able to get through our armor. I’ve been testing it out for ages to find something that can get through, and all I’ve gotten is the impact of hits, and even that is eh.” Pidge considered what she had said for a moment and then smiled evilly. “Wanna try it?”

“Oh no, I am not falling for that. Neither of us are stupid enough-- Keith!“

Keith glanced up from where he had been crouching. While Lance had been distracted with the sound of his own voice, Keith had stooped down to do exactly what Lance had been saying neither of them were dumb enough to attempt. He wasn’t sure whether he should be insulted because of Lance unintentionally calling him dumb or for Lance not knowing him well enough to not realize he’s an impulsive little shit. “It doesn’t go through,” he informed them.

While Lance sighed, Pidge crouched down beside him. “I wonder what would happen if it did,” she said as she used her gauntlet to scan the substance. After a microsecond of processing time, a series of blurbs popped up, most of the information complete nonsense to Keith. Pidge skimmed it before updating them. “It’s something called mepline, and it seems like it wouldn’t hurt to touch it. The overall scan is good, there’s nothing in here that’s poisonous or that would make it corrosive, the pH is reasonable, this stream isn’t contaminated with anything. It might end up, like, not drying for hours or something dumb, but it’s not harmful.”

At some point during this spiel, Lance had joined them in kneeling. He had been leaning into Pidge, trying to make sense of the screen, but now he smirked. “Sooo, it wouldn’t do anything bad if I did this?” Lance shoved his hands into the stream, scooped up the liquid, and splashed it right into her face and hair. Since she wasn’t wearing her helmet (none of them were), the mepline ran down Pidge’s head, leaving a dark purple stain in its wake. 

“Lance!” Pidge exclaimed. “Oh, you’re so gonna get it.” But he was already dashing away, hopping from rock to rock. Pidge stood up to chase him, but Keith was quicker, darting past her and towards Lance. Unfortunately for the chase-ee, Keith was faster than him too. It didn’t help Lance’s case that he was turning around every two seconds to stick his tongue out like a five-year-old.

The older boy tackled the younger, pinning Lance on his stomach. Keith smirked down at him. “How do you like that?”

“I’m pretty into it.” He winked. Keith rolled his eyes, fighting back a smile.

Pidge, finally catching up, knelt next to them.

“Would you like to do the honors?” Keith asked her.

She smiled at him, feigning a polite air. “How kind of you.” She then scooped her hand through the liquid and began dousing Lance’s head. 

Lance spluttered and shouted the entire time. “Betrayal! How could you, Pidgeot, I thought we were friends!”

She only grinned, shrugging her shoulders as she continued dousing him. “All’s fair in love and war.” After a moment, Pidge stopped splashing to look over her handiwork. “I think you’ve been suitably punished. You may be released.” 

Keith pulled himself off of Lance, now also looking over Pidge’s workmanship. The left side of Lance’s head had been thoroughly stained purple with flecks splattering onto the other half of his skull. A quick glance back at Pidge’s own discoloration told him that soon Lance’s hair and skin would be dry, crusty, and blooming in a flower-like formation. So much for that moisturizing routine of his.

“Nice,” Keith said, high-fiving Pidge.

Lance stood up and clutched a hand to his heart melodramatically as he rose. “I can’t believe you chose Pidge over me, Keith. I thought we bonded, you cradled me in your arms!”

“Why is it that you only remember the bonding moment when it's convenient to you?” Keith asked.

“I’m wounded, wounded I say. I have no idea what you’re referring to. Only a complete prick would do that, and I am no prick.”

“Whatever helps you get your beauty sleep.” Keith turned away and waved his hand forward as he walked. “Come on, Pidge, it’s no good for a growing brain like yours to interact with douchebags like him.” Keith could hear footsteps following him, presumably Pidge’s.

A good assumption, until the steps sped up into a run and Keith was tackled to the ground.

Lance laughed in his ear. “Oh no, if I have to be purple, so do you.”

Suddenly, Lance was viciously splashing Keith’s head, causing him to start yelling. 

“Lance!” he shouted. He squirmed his head the best he could, making the back of his scalp take the brunt of the attack. Somewhere through the mepline splattering into his ears, he heard Lance’s continued cackling, and even further back, Pidge’s muffled snickering.

Keith pulled his arms out from under Lance. With his newfound maneuverability, he shoved Lance off of him and wormed away far enough that he could stand. “I think it should be pointed out that the Galra of the group was the last to turn purple.”

“Ooh, there’s one for irony,” said Pidge. “Gotta love how that turned out.”

Lance rose from his spot on the ground, running a hand through his now crusty and purple hair. “Welp, I officially blame Pidge for ruining my hair. She was the one who wanted to explore  _ and _ the one who told me the purple water wasn’t dangerous. All her fault.”

Keith smiled. “Or its your fault because you’re the one who splashed Pidge?”

Lance began tapping both his chin and his foot, miming deep thought. “Orrrrr, it’s still Pidge’s fault because this way I get to flop on her dramatically when we get back to the castle.”

“I see your point.” Keith hummed, considering Lance’s suggestion. “I guess I’ll have to do the same, as it's clearly also her fault my hair is also violet.”

“Noo, Keith,” Pidge moaned, “You’re supposed to be on my side!”

He shrugged. “How am I supposed to argue with such solid reasoning? Guess you’ll just have to have both of us come after you. Speaking of which--” Keith glanced over at Lance, a look the other immediately understood. Unfortunately, so did Pidge.

“No! Nope, uh-uh, gotta catch me first!” She bolted from the scene. With one more glance between the two boys, they simultaneously began chasing after Pidge.

 

~~~

 

It was once again night time at the castle. Keith was once again wandering its halls. The brightness of the lights above conflicted roughly in his head with the idea that all his teammates were sleeping.

At least, they were supposed to be sleeping.

He passed Pidge’s bedroom, but after a second thought, he backpedaled to press an ear to the door. Silence. Keith breathed a sigh of relief, then continued on his way.

But then he passed by Shiro’s room. Noise. Talking. And… short, quiet, occasional laughter. 

“He was always getting into trouble. I first met him in our fifth year astronomy class when he came in twenty minutes late with _ Starbucks. _ There isn’t a Starbucks for miles outside the Garrison! And we’re not supposed to leave the facility, let alone go to the city twenty miles away to get coffee!” Shiro’s voice. Raucous laughter.

“No-no-no-no-no, I actually know how he did that, he wanted to make a big entrance, so he packed a Starbucks cup in his suitcase and filled it with Garrison coffee so it would look like he went to Starbucks before class.” Pidge’s voice.

“I believe that one-hundred percent, Matt totally would.” Talking about Pidge’s brother.

Keith backed away from the door. This conversation wasn’t for him. It was for them.

It was for easing the grief and the pain. Because Matt remained missing. Because Matt was  **not there** .

His teammates may not have been getting the rest they deserved, but they were getting the love and care they deserved. And that was enough.

 

~~~

 

Hunked pulled the tray from the oven. “Alright, the-- what did we decide on?”

“Engine-cooked lizard cookies.” Pidge said.

“The engine-cooked lizard cookies are ready. Who wants to be the first taste-tester?”

Keith raised his hand. The three were unwinding in the kitchen of the castle after a mission briefing, baking green and red(which somehow managed to be separate colors and not mix) cookies primarily composed of ingredients from Ainus. Notably, the planet didn’t have any lizards, nor were the cookies cooked(they were baked), nor were they made in a furnace. Overall, the name was a disaster.

Not waiting for Hunk’s permission, Keith grabbed one of the contradictorily-named cookies and bit into it. It tasted like raspberries, making it a tasty disaster.

It was also incredibly hot.

“Ooh, ow, that burns.” Keith managed while spitting out the treat. 

“Wow. Thank you, Captain Impulsive, for that stunning revelation,” Pidge deadpanned.

“While I’m thrilled to see you be that excited over my baking skills--” Hunk smiled at him, the kind of “what are we going to do with you” smile Keith associated with loving mothers from adventure novels, and pulled off his oven mitts. “--there is, in fact, a reason you’re supposed to let baked goods cool.”

Keith swallowed the remaining pieces in his mouth, then grumbled, “Shut up.”

Hunk handed him a glass of water, which he gratefully sipped. 

The yellow paladin settled on a nearby stool and began threading and unthreading his fingers. 

Together.

Apart. 

Together.

Apart.

Keith waited for him to speak. 

Together.

Apart.

“Alright, I’m just gonna say it.” 

Together.

“Am I the only one who’s super worried about the mission tomorrow? Like, the whole ‘enclosed public space’ thing is weird and we can’t use our lions and it’s just murdering my anxiety.”

Apart.

Pidge grabbed a napkin and began fidgeting with it. Keith could only see her hair, still crusty and purple, as it shagged down in front of her face. “I don’t like it either. Especially when I’ll be the only one with immediate access to my bayard once things start going down. It’s not that I don’t trust you, but when no one else near me will have their weapons in their hands, and the gang of Unilu will...” She glanced toward Keith, wary of offending him.

“No, I agree,” Keith said, “I mean, I get that they’re basically the Space Mob, and we need to get their info on their deals with the Galra, but keeping our weapons in bags? Where it’ll be more difficult to grab? Even if it is to blend in, it’ll be really, really risky.”

Hunk sighed. “Quick obligatory reminder: what are you not supposed to do on missions that could go south at any time?” He stared pointedly at Keith, who huffed.

“Be a self-sacrificial idiot, because the Unilu will send me to a gladiator ring, and I will die,” he recited.

“Thank you,” Hunk said, pleased.

The room settled. Hunk had gotten the correct reply. Keith had gotten solidarity about his worries for the next mission. The world was… maybe not good. They were all still worried. But they were together. They had each other.

Pidge whispered, “Can I have a cookie? They’ve cooled.”

“Definitely,” Hunk said.

 

~~~

 

The mission briefing began early in the morning, scheduled for 7:00am Castle Time. Of course, Keith had already been awake for hours, though for once it seemed he hadn’t been the only one. 

They met in a meeting room near the bridge. The paladins wore their everyday clothes. Allura and Coran were suited up in their armor. Small talk before the meeting was whispered and clustered on the outskirts of the room. That’s where all the crew members remained; no one dared to stray toward the center.

Until Allura placed herself at the head of table. “Will everyone be seated, please?” she called.

So everyone did.

She glanced around, scanning their faces. “I know everyone’s a bit… anxious about this mission, but I promise you all everyone will be doing everything in their power to make sure this mission is a success and that we get our paladins home safely. If this wasn’t absolutely necessary, we wouldn’t be taking this risk at all.” Allura sighed, looking over the paladins once more. “Shiro, would you like to take it from here?”

He nodded before standing up. His hand still brushed the table, swaying against the surface. “Thank you, Princess. Team, would we like to go over the plan again? Just in case?”

Screw ‘You could hear a pin drop.’ Try ‘You could hear a silent blackhole three-thousand light years away through the void of space, where sound can’t travel.’

“Alright, I’m going to take that as a no. Allura, I think it would be best if we just started. No one’s nerves, including mine, are going to go away until we’ve finished.” 

Allura nodded. “Everyone, ready positions.”

One by one, the paladins rose to their feet, leaving in pairs. First, Allura and Shiro, conversing in quiet murmurs. Next, Hunk and Lance, all stiff jokes and stiff smiles. Finally, Coran and Pidge, the arm of the former on the shoulders of the latter. 

That left Keith to trail behind them all, to listen to their small buzz of voices and steps.

“What’s that you’re humming, Number Five?” Keith heard Coran ask, all quiet and soft and low.

“Oh, um, sorry, it’s something my dad would sing around the house, ignore it.” He could see Pidge watching her feet, still tucked into the other’s embrace.

“It’s alright, nothing to be sorry about. What’s its name?”

“Think of Me.’ It’s from an old musical he liked,  _ Phantom of the Opera _ .”

“Ooh, I love a good show. What’s that about?”

And on it went. On they talked, traveling to eighteenth century Paris, France. Traveling somewhere that was  **not here** .  **Not here** didn’t have any nerve-rattling missions looming ahead.  **Not here** didn’t have a knot of anxiety resting in all their stomachs.

Never before had Keith felt so grateful towards Coran.

 

~~~

 

The mission had officially begun. Everyone awaited in their ready position. Allura and Coran stood on the Bridge of the Castle, listening in on the team’s microphones they had planted on their collars. Hunk and Shiro wandered near the primary target, near enough to get involved but distant enough to not be suspicious. Lance, Pidge, and Keith? They crept into the most dangerous part of the Space Mall, passed a doorway marked “Authorized Personnel Only.” This was where the Unilu kept their most confidential trades.

It turned out Coran hadn’t been entirely wrong to be suspect of the Unilu. While a majority of the species had moved away from their silver tongues of old, a small fraction made up a large portion of… some sort of horrendously effective fusion of the black market and the Mob. They could get anything for you, do anything for you, but not without a heavy debt you could never repay. 

Zarkon had made a series of deals with the rogue Unilu, who knows at what cost, and now the group had the plans for future weapons. Keith wondered if the Unilu were supplying the blueprints, or if the blueprints were their price. 

The weapon plans were stored on a computer tucked away in the depths of the Space Mall, and that was exactly where Lance, Pidge, and Keith headed. They were the hardest to recognize, afterall, with their heads still heavily stained. 

Pidge guided them through the maze of hallways, referencing a projection of a map coming from a plate-like tablet in her hand.

She glanced back at them. “We’re almost there.”

Left.

Left.

A door, which Pidge hacked open.

Left.

Right.

Straight.

Straight.

Another door.

Straight.

Right.

Pidge used the tablet to enter a virus into the door’s locking mechanism, and they only had to wait a couple of seconds before it unlocked. She grinned, then opened the door.

The inside was bare, save for not one, not two, but three cameras(which was a little excessive in Keith’s opinion) decorating the walls. This fact would’ve been more concerning if Pidge hadn’t previously set all cameras to a video loop before their entrance. 

Lance stood guard at the door while Keith did a walkthrough, ensuring no one lurked in the few nooks and crannies the room held. Pidge had already set up shop and began hacking the CPU by the time Keith joined Lance at the door. 

Should they be encountered, their best chance for survival would be to pretend to be lost and confused shoppers, hence the civilian clothing. While the Unilu were deadly to intruders, they tended to have pity on mall-goers, who provided a safe front for their deals and a large supply of people willing to make said deals. Both Lance and Keith carried satchels containing their bayards, ready to be activated if needed; yet, they remained tucked away to prevent ruining their charade.

Pidge’s typing echoed through the door, only barely audible.

Lance stood at Keith’s right. They both scanned the hallways for possible threats.

The team was safe, for now.

They remained perfectly silent for a minute or two, until Lance broke the silence. “Soo… got any grapes?”

“What?” Keith replied.

“You know, ‘the duck walked up to the lemonade stand,’ and all that.” Lance sang the middle section to an overly peppy and catchy tune, bouncing along with it.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Keith gave a soft puff of laughter, thankful for the distraction.

Lance sighed loudly, rolling his entire head along with the sound. “I’m not even sure why I try. You wouldn’t know a pop culture reference if it bit off your head and then rode off in your lion.”

“Says the one whose lion actually got ridden off in.” Keith fake-coughed as a purposely failed attempt to disguise his words.

“Umm?! That was one time?! Let it go?!”

Their laughter was cut off by the sound of footsteps down the hall. No distraction, no reprieve, no escape for them.

Lance swore while Keith knocked on the door, signaling Pidge. Then she swore. 

“I’m just saying, it makes much more sense to hold the deal in the mall than on some asteroid,” echoed a voice down the passageway.

“Pidge, how close to done are you?” Lance whispered through the door.

A second voice spoke next. “Eh, we gotta spice things up somehow, may as well just go with it.”

Keith heard Pidge groan, muffled by the metal between them. “Hold them off, I need just a few more doboshes.”

Two armored figures turned the distant corner. The enemy was upon them.

Lance turned to him and murmured, “I’m going to start yelling at you.” Before Keith could respond or even think to respond, he did just that. “I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU KNEW WHERE YOU WERE GOING.”

“I- uh,” Keith stammered. 

Lance tilted his head at the door frantically and hissed, “Come on, man, we gotta stall for Pidge.” Keith blinked, then nodded in response. Lance continued, “HOW DID WE GET LOST IN A MALL? YOU MANAGED TO FIND THE ONE PART WHERE THERE AREN’T DIRECTORIES AT LITERALLY EVERY CORNER.” 

The Unilu looked toward them, drawing away from their own conversation. Keith had to say something, it was too late to do nothing at all. 

“Well, umm-- WELL I’M SORRY THAT YOU… THAT YOU REFUSE TO USE THE NORMAL BATHROOMS LIKE EVERYONE ELSE! WE COULD’VE AVOIDED THIS IF YOU HADN’T NEEDED TO FIND A PRIVATE ONE.” 

Well, that was one excuse.

Lance had to put a hand up to his mouth to cover a grin. He rolled his eyes, but it was obviously forced from Keith’s angle. Keit might die, but at the very least he would’ve died just having made Lance laugh.

The moment shattered at the sound of one of the alien’s voices. “Hey! Whatcha doing back here?! This is employees only!”

The paladins turned toward the Unilu, now mere meters apart. Both aliens wore thin… leather? Leather armor decorated with spikes and various markings. The one on the left stood significantly taller and younger than the alien on the right, who held a cane Keith was sure had some alternate purpose other than assisting with his walking. Filled holsters sat snug at their hips.

Keith crossed his arms, attempting to get his nerves under control, attempting to ignore the adrenaline telling him to either stab something or bolt. “My  _ friend _ here has a phobia of public bathrooms, so he decided we needed to find a more private one.”

Lance squawked. “Oh,  _ really _ . Well,  _ my _ friend here thought he could find an employees-only bathroom back here, but instead he just got us lost, and now we’re going to have to ask these employees how to get out and probably get kicked out of the entire mall in the process. And if that wasn’t bad enough, I’m almost certainly not even going to get to pee!”

The Unilu glanced at each other, eyebrows furrowed. No, no, no, the aliens weren’t going to buy it, they were toast.

The tall Unilu turned her gaze back toward them. “You’re telling me,” she paused, “that you came back here,” another pause, “for a bathroom?”

“Yeah,” Lance said splaying a hand in mock confusion, “Why else?”

She looked at the older alien, waiting for his verdict.

_ Please _ , Keith thought, panicked,  _ Please let him believe us _ . 

The short alien narrowed his eyes. “How did you even get back here?”

Keith flicked his gaze toward Lance, but Lance was already shrugging in response. “Uh, we walked through the door near the knife stand. Was it supposed to be locked or something?”

The short Unilu took a step forward, his cane hitting the ground with a singular thud. “Yes, and constant camera supervision.” Keith could pinpoint the exact moment when the tall alien realized what that meant.

“Um, you see--” Lance stammered. No, no, no, no no no.

“It’s hardly our fault that your security is crap. You might wanna work on that,” Keith managed. Wait. Maybe. Maybe, maybe, maybe maybe maybe.

“Yes, we’ll have to do that,” conceded the tall Unilu. Yes, yes, yes, yes yes yes.

The short one yanked a gun from his holster and aimed it right at them. “After we take care of you. Put your hands up!”

Fuck.

Both paladins threw their hands up. There was no time to grab their bayards, no time to warn Pidge, no time no time no time no time. Hands up, and pray for all their lives.

“Against the wall,” Shortie growled. They obeyed, pressing their backs against the barrier between the guns and Pidge. Keith internally begged anyone who could hear him to let her make it out of here with her life. She had a chance

“Now,” the tall alien stepped forward to be level with her companion, “What are you really doing here?”

Keith growled, “Like we’d ever tell you.”

He shouldn’t have said that, by god he shouldn’t have said that, because the next thing he knew there were two “BANG”’s and Lance was on the ground and he was bracing his stomach and crying out and oh god.

And then the pain in his own forearm set in. 

The short Unilu had the nerve to smile. “We’re gonna ask you again, what are you-”

“HANDS UP.”

Keith could now confirm no one who cared could hear his prayers.

Pidge stood in the doorway, flipping her bayard between pointing at each of the Unilu. In her other hand, she held her laptop above her head. “I just downloaded thousands of gigabytes of top secret information onto the hard drive of this computer, and unless you want it to be released into the universe at large-” Pidge narrowed her eyes, “-you’re going to leave these two idiots alone, and chase me instead.”

The short alien turned his gun toward Pidge, but before he or his partner could react-

“Pidge, don’t you dare-!”

“Lance, you’ve become my brother, I don’t think I could’ve made it this far without you. Shut the hell up.” No no no no no.

“You can’t just-!”

“You’re one to talk, Keith. Just let me do this for you.” Pidge’s voice broke, and Keith could feel something in his chest do the same.

And before anything more could happen-

“GET HER!”

Pidge bolted, and the Unilu ran after her.

Several “BANG”’s rang out, but Pidge’s footsteps thundered on, skidding around a corner and soon out of earshot.

Keith was frozen. His brain was blank. He should be moving. He should be doing something. Pidge was being chased by two aliens toting guns. He should be helping her. 

But Lance. Slumped on the floor, grasping at his stomach,  _ helpless _ . 

He should be helping Lance. Pidge had a chance on her own. Lance did not.

Keith dove to his side. Blood had seeped into a small puddle-shape in Lance’s shirt, just barely the size of the brown hands pressing against the wound. The red splotch extended solely from the boy’s front, not from his back. Good, no bigger, badder exit wound.

That didn’t erase the singular big bad entrance wound.

Keith yanked off his jacket and pressed it to Lance’s stomach. Keith’s own wound could wait, the blast had only brushed him, only brushed him. He repeated instructions to himself to stay focused. Staunch Lance’s bleeding, get him to the Castle, stick him in a healing pod. Ignore the running Pidge, ignore the terror infecting his veins, focus. Focus on the nightmare in front of him. Focus on the terrifying red splotch and not on the pinched face with shiny streaks running down it of the boy in front of him. Ignore everything and focus.

“Lance, I need you to hold this down. I’m going to carry you back to the Castle.”

He groaned in response, but thank god he pressed the jacket onto his bullet wound.

Keith slung his arms under his fellow paladin’s legs and back and stood up as carefully and smoothly and delicately and softly as he could. Still, a hiss of pain came from Keith’s arms, causing him to wince. He turned toward the hallway and made his way down it.

He had to hurry. Keith didn’t know how much blood loss a human could handle, but from the growing stain on his jacket, he didn’t think that Lance’s could take a meandering-speed’s worth. How many turns had they taken to get to here? Where had they taken turns, and in what direction? If they had Pidge-- Oh, god, what had happened to Pidge? Was she on the ground somewhere, with her own growing red-- Keith needed to focus. All he had was  **here** .  **There** didn’t exist, not for him, not in his line of sight. All he had was  **here** , and he could fix  **here** . Keith just needed to get Lance back to the Castle, and  **here** would be better than it had ever been. Yes, he just needed to keep moving, and that would happen. 

Left.

Straight.

A door that Keith easily pushed open.

Straight.

Straight.

Lance groaned in his arms. 

Left.

Right.

Another door.

Right.

Right.

 

The exit.

 

Keith shoved the door open to safety. He was one step closer to the Castle, one step closer to fixing  **here** .

BANG.

Not near them, far in the distance.

Fear spread through his stomach in the shape of a spiderweb. 

Keith should go help. That could’ve been Pidge or Hunk or Shiro. He could save Lance and everyone else. He turned toward the sound so he could--

Lance coughed, and blood flecked his shirt and chin. 

He turned back toward the exit. Lance needed a healing pod. Keith needed to trust Pidge, or at the very least his other teammates. Keith had a job to do.

So he ran. His feet pounded beneath him. Lance was heavy, and he became harder and harder for Keith to carry and caused pain to his injured arm. Adrenaline thudded through his veins; it was the only reason he hadn’t dropped the boy yet.

Keith dashed past stores and stands and civilians and species of all kinds, but he didn’t register any of it. The second any of it was out of his vision, it disappeared from his memory. 

~

Every step was harder than the last. Every step, Lance weighed heavier in his arms. He was almost back to the Castle, almost almost almost. The world was dimming, maybe Keith should’ve staunched his own wound a little better, but if Lance was still holding on, so could he. 

~

They were back on the ship. Almost to the healing pods. Almost almost almost. His vision flickered, but they were so close. He couldn’t stop now. It seemed the floor disagreed, however, as it immediately climbed up to slap his face. 

Lance was next to him. Unconscious. That was bad. Bad bad bad bad no no no nonono.

~

Someone was picking up and carrying Keith, and he started to protest until he noticed Lance was already gone. That was a bad sign, this time for Keith. He didn’t remember Lance disappearing. The someone took him into the medbay, where he spotted Lance already in a pod. Strong, thin hands placed him in his own healing pod. Cold fluid washed over him the same time as unconsciousness did.

 

~~~

 

Keith had never been good at sleeping the night through. Not as a kid with his dad, not as a teen in the foster system, not as a paladin floating through outer space. 

Healing pods were the exception to this rule. If he went in one at a reasonable “bed time” time, then it would be able hold his consciousness hostage long into the morning hours. (It would be able to keep it hostage for forever, if outside forces deemed it so.) Despite this extra sleep, Keith never felt well-rested coming out of one. They made him feel like someone had injected him with enough caffeine to kill a small elephant, let him run around on a caffeine-high all night, and when he came down from said high, threw in a sprinkle of nausea for good measure.

Keith felt all of this when he fell out of the healing pod.

Strong hands caught him, though not the same pair as the ones that put him in. These ones were thicker and a different shade of brown.

He looked up to meet his friend’s eyes. “Hunk, is Lance okay?” He needed to know it wasn’t all for nothing.

Hunk helped Keith to find his balance, then nodded. “Yeah, he should be out of his pod in about half a varga. Your blood loss kept you in there for longer than that wound should’ve.” Hunk gave him a stink eye, but it felt half-hearted, distracted almost.

Keith glanced around, taking in the room. Only one healing pod was in use, and it contained Lance. The rest of the space was pristine, with no sign of any and all blood that must’ve dripped from their wounds. He took in Lance’s appearance (a little worse for wear, but good all considered) and Hunk’s too.

“Why are you wearing your armor?” Keith asked as he sat in front of Lance’s pod. Hunk sat down next to him.

“My pants are on the mend. They, uh, got a bit torn up at the mall,” he said. 

Keith glanced over, concerned. “Did you get hurt?”

Hunk looked down at his hands. “Yeah. Shiro did too. Allura and Coran had to come in to get us.”

“I’m-” Keith placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I’m glad you guys are okay.”

All Hunk did was nod, still fixated on his fidgeting fingers.

So he continued talking; he wasn’t sure what else to do. “I was worried, namely about Pidge. I mean, I was worried about you guys too, but Pidge- Well, a straight fight wouldn’t exactly be in her favor. When she ran off with those guys chasing her, I wasn’t sure she would- I guess it doesn’t really matter now. She’s not in a healing pod, and you didn’t mention her when you said Shiro got hurt too, so she made it out okay-”

“No, she didn’t.”

Keith froze. “What?”

“No, she didn’t.” Keith watched as Hunk’s stature crumpled in on itself before his eyes. “Shiro and I were shot and couldn’t move, and by the time Allura and Coran were gone, they were too. Both the aliens, and Pidge. We don’t know where she’s at.”

  
  



End file.
